(NewsNation) — As artificial intelligence tools become more powerful, the lines between fantasy and reality are becoming increasingly blurred.
Just look to the latest update of Midjourney. The AI image generator rolled out v6 back in December, bringing with it the ability to create more realistic-looking photos of people.
Users of the tool are coining it "fauxtorealism."
Typically, AI-generated images appear cartoonish or have a clear animated look to them. But with the latest update, Midjourney has been able to produce photos that look incredibly real.
Take, for example, this image of Elon Musk or these photos posted to a Reddit thread. There are tells in many of them — distorted-looking hands, for example — but at a glance they look like they could have come straight from someone's phone.
It's not just people, either. This collection on Reddit shows AI-generated images of food dishes that look like they could be served at Michelin star restaurants.
Tech companies, advocacy groups and even lawmakers have been searching for a middle ground on AI, strategizing on how to capitalize on its strengths while safeguarding against its risks.
In July, seven major tech companies, including Google and the creators of ChatGPT, agreed to follow a set of White House AI safety guidelines. Amazon, Anthropic, Google, Inflection, Meta, Microsoft and OpenAI say they’d help move toward safe, secure, and transparent development of AI technology.
As AI capabilities rapidly expand, the White House has asked companies to help address “society’s greatest challenges” and research societal risks that AI can pose, including bias, discrimination and privacy concerns.
NewsNation digital reporter Katie Smith contributed to this report.